A Concern for Israel’s Premature Return (Aliyah)

Summary: With mounting hostility to Israel, the return of Jewish people to the land of Israel is seen a premature. This is seen from a biblical perspective that needs further consideration…

As Israelites whose ancestors were conquered by the Assyrians and later scattered among the nations, we look forward to returning, but not before a serious impending event. Here’s why?

We have overlooked G-d’s promise to punish seven times if we failed to learn our lessons and we walk contrary to G-d, according to Leviticus 26. Linking the 7 times to 390 years of apostasy in Ezekiel 4:5,6, 7 x 390 = 2730 years that began in 722 BCE. Subtracting, the 2730 years ended in 2008 or 2009 (no year “0”). 1948 was premature.

United Nations approved of Jews moving to Israel in 1948, but an adversarial relationship now raises questions. The UN is a catholic (universal) organization that favors a melting pot of many peoples, like Babylon or Babel where languages were confused. We see this in Revelation 13 where the papacy is represented by an amalgamation of the four beasts that represented Babylon, Medo-Persia, Grecia and Rome. As each empire conquered the previous one, it assimilated the culture of the previous one. Hence the depiction of papal Rome as a leopard-like beast with mouth like a lion, feet like a bear, and seven heads with ten horns from Daniel 7.

Then comes the United States represented by the lamb-like beast. Gentle, peace-loving, symbol of Christ until it brings fire from heaven (Hiroshima?) and speaks like a dragon. It causes the world to make an image (a look-alike) to the previous papal beast that dominated the Old World. The US is creating New World Order, but it brings an end to America as we’ve known it. Revelation 13 suggests false worship that the Jews may understand in Daniel 7 from the ‘little horn’ (papacy) that grew out of the 4th beast (Rome) and changed God’s times and laws, vs 25.

When the New World Order is set up, aliyah will be appropriate for Jews and Christians like 7th-day Adventists who honor the Sabbath of the Bible as it must allow for freedom of religion, at least initially. Revelation 13 seems parallel to Daniel’s 3rd chapter.

Daniel’s 9th chapter offers insight to timing that seems imminent. 70 weeks [of years] were determined for a probationary time that included a Messiah (anointed One) who would come 69 weeks (of years) from the decree that granted Israelites freedom to leave Persia and return to build Jerusalem, verse 25. Artaxerxes’ decree in 457 BCE was the starting point of 490 years ending in 34 AD, but how does this relate to us?

490 years spanned 10 jubilees that came every 49 years. The 50th was the first year of the next cycle because the years were formatted into weeks so the land could rest every 7th year, though Israel failed to honor this provision.

The point is, 490 years ending in 34 AD were 10 jubilees, but if we come to the 50th jubilee—the jubilee of jubilees, it was 1994-95 when Pope John Paul went to the UN on Yom Kippur (counting from the crescent moon, chodesh in Exodus 12:2).

Then a 20-year gap before Pope Francis also went to the UN on the Day of Atonement! Why the 20-year gap?

Jewish sages cite Psalm 90 (1000 years are like yesterday) to say that something big is coming at the end of 6,000 years because God gives us six days to do all our work, Exodus 20.

The B’rit Chadashah says 1,000 years are as a day. God is not slack…the day of the Lord will come. 2Peter 3:8-10. The Greek wording suggests no delay, but how would we know when it is?

Maybe Jewish chronologists missed some years. Both Ussher’s Chronology and Sir Isaac Newton (who translated parts of the Bible put the world at 6,000 years circa 2000. Maybe they were right…

If we put the jubilee cycles into 1,000 years, 490 = 10 jubilees and 490 more make 980 years. There are 20 years at the end of the jubilees—signaled by popes’ visits 20 years apart on Yom Kippur. In this context, God is not slack…the day of the Lord will come.

According to the pope, this is the “Year of Mercy/Jubilee” and we could expect big events when 2016 ends. “The day of the Lord” is also found in Zechariah 14 where “all nations are gathered against Jerusalem.” The houses are rifled, the women ravished. Half the city goes into captivity. This is parallel language to 70 AD when Titus surrounded Jerusalem at Passover.

This brings a concern for Israel today and what a Messianic rabbi said: “God has two houses (Israel and Judah) and He will clean them both before He puts them together.” He was alluding to Ezekiel 37 where two sticks become one kingdom in Ezekiel’s hand after a great shaking that is probably an earthquake. An earthquake is an initiating factor in the day of the Lord, Joel 2.